In April, the Olympia Branch of The Mountaineers issued a Stewardship Challenge to Mountaineers organization wide. The purpose of the Stewardship Challenge is to engage all members to participate in a rewarding day of stewardship. The Olympia Stewardship Committee believes this day of service will create closer connections to our magnificent natural resources, demonstrate our determination to support the public lands, and awaken a genuine spirit of service to our region in each participant. In short: we feel it's our duty to leave the trails better than before.

By May, we had already made significant progress on the challenge, with 179 members signed up for stewardship activities with The Mountaineers. In the first six weeks, those folks:

Gave 2,048 hours through Mountaineers activities

Supported the improvement of 20 different outdoor spaces through Mountaineers activities

You can learn more in our progress report. Looking ahead, the the Olympia Conservation Committee is continuing to support the Stewardship Challenge by:

Increasing the number of trail and crew leaders who take on the serious efforts of organizing activities to clear the trails of fallen trees, encroaching brush and more.

Providing training. Jim French organized crosscut saw certification earlier this year and was successful in certifying 15 members.

Providing a diversity of opportunities. This year, Kathy Fox and Regina Robinson organized overnight trips to the Olympic National Park that included restoration along the Elwha River and nursery work at the Matt Albright Native Plant Center. Bonnie Betts is leading members on a work party at Mt. Rainier. Jennifer Fortin worked with the Forest Service to obtain permission to bring a work party to Porter Falls Trail.

Provide opportunities in different settings. Keith Arnold arranged prairie appreciation tours at Glacial Heritage Preserve, followed by a work party to remove invasive species. Bob Keranen rallied scrambling students to participate in trail and climbing cleanup at McLeary Cliffs. Rich Curtis' passion to remove invasive species in areas of Mount St. Helens will result in upcoming stewardshipactivities as he works with Gifford Pinchot Forest Service personnel to find where we can make the most impact. Mary Birchem, our Capitol Land Trust partner, schedules activities weekly on The Mountaineers website. Some are family friendly.

Opportunity to receive credit for participating in stewardship activity with an organization other than The Mountaineers. The Conservation Committee developed an online form that the member submits after completion of the non-Mountaineers activity.

The committee was also successful in codifying the Challenge in the Olympia Conservation Committee Bylaws, which now read: "It is the policy of the Officers Committee to support branch-wide conservation efforts and to encourage all Olympia Mountaineers to aspire to volunteering for a minimum of one day of conservation work every year."

TAKE THE CHALLENGE TODAY AND DO YOUR PART IN CARING FOR OUR WILD PLACES.